john leach. >> local councils has basis top a settlement as most of the other departments. does the prime minister share my dismay that manchester city council is choosing to close libraries, leisure centers and the warden service, while of the same time they are happy to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds on an alicia keys concert and leave 100 million pounds in reserves sitting in the bank? >> my honorable friend makes an important point. of coarse councils face difficult spending decisions, but if you look at the level of spending and brands they are still getting it is in many cases equivalent to what they're getting under the last government. obviously the economy has declined since then, so we have to cut our costs accordingly. they should be held accountable for the decisions that they made. in some cases there can be little doubt the councils are making high-profile cuts to try to make a point, and they should not be damaging peoples livelihoods. they should be doing the the best for their cities. >> will the prime minister confirm for the record that thanks to h